M-kaa also shares his impressions, saying that he has not been in Astana for the last two years, which, according to him, can be compared to decades when speaking of the new capital, where construction projects are treated as the affairs of national importance [ru]:

The city grows and blossoms, but there are still not many people on the streets. The city looks like a decoration – its wide avenues and huge buildings look especially deserted and depressing during the daytime under the burning sun.

For me it is hard to understand, who goes to a whole loads of the useless dull restaurants that look like each other and lack any sort of concept. Who lives in numerous residential communities and works in the giant business centers? As one of my friends from Astana said: “It would be much better if they kept themselves busy with making love – to increase population”.

It’s a paradise for bureaucrats. Lack of good taste and talents reign there along with pomposity. And it is even more sad to realize that foreigners would automatically associate the people of Kazakhstan with this “something”.

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